RVs, Campers, Camper Vans, etc.

My friend lives in one of those after losing his house in a divorce, and I must say I am not jealous.

Signed, million man.

I’ve never stayed in a recreational vehicle of any type. They are very cool though. Some of my neighbors have pop-ups and tow-type campers and one has a full on RV with an engine, a kitchen, restroom and propane, etc.

My wife wants to buy an RV and I’m not averse to the notion but I won’t commit until I’m retired in a few more years. I simply don’t see how it’s affordable until spring of 2028.

It would be great for camping, hunting and fishing trips.

When my kids were still in elementary school we got a nice 28’ pull behind with one slide and we camped all over in that thing. For years we went to all the state parks close to us and we even took it to Disney for a week in Florida. We’ve since upgraded to a 34’ with 3 slides that I pull with a big 3500 truck, but I think I like the ease of towing that slightly smaller one.

But yeah, it’s a fun lifestyle to get into and we are planning a trip to the Hot Springs Arkansas area for next month. If your able, I would definitely encourage giving it a try.

They've gone the way of libraries. Mostly for homeless people.

We had travel trailers my entire childhood. My parents still have one and go out frequently with it during the summer. I've looked at getting one, especially because a lot of campgrounds are getting so crowded and there is less privacy, especially in a tent. I'd probably do less long hiking though if I had trailer.

"I have become obsessed with RVs, campers, campervans, airstreams, truck campers and the like. I've watched a lot of YouTube videos of them"

You're probably just turning 60ish and wanting to travel before you kick the bucket. Don't overthink it, get what you can afford that suits your needs, and go for it while you can. You can make it work however it turns out.

I always found RV's and campers fascinating, because I almost never saw them when I was growing up, so they were interesting to look at. The concept of being able to take a small house with you on the road was interesting to me. The only trade-ups are, they're gas-guzzlers, and the space in there is kinda cramped. Unless it's a really big camper, the maximum number of people to comfortably fit in one of those is 2. But having a nice, clean flush toilet and a shower at a campsite is always a plus.

One of the more interesting things I noticed when moving to northern CA a few years ago, was how many people had RV's or trailers. In fact, quite a few houses will deliberately add in a second driveway to their yard so they can park their RV in the side yard and be able to drive it out easily. We also have neighbors where I currently live, who have relatives that periodically like to drive in and park their huge RV in front of the house for a few weeks, and then leave. They come every few months during the year.

Both mom and my aunt (dad's side) have told me about an interesting subculture among the older crowd. Some older couples love to live in an RV year-round, and migrate from one set of states to another, depending on the season. They'll always pick their favorite RV parks to set up shop. To finance their lifestyle, they'll rent out homes in whatever state they started in. In fact, the aforementioned aunt (dad's older sis) does that with my uncle and their dogs: they spend the warm half of the year with my uncle's relatives in the Dakotas, and the cold half of the year with my aunt's relatives in Arizona. They rent out their home in Vegas to get an income. Due to storage issues, my aunt and uncle ended up buying themselves a house in Reno to act as a "headquarters" where they could store their stuff year-round, whether they were "at home" or abroad in the other states mentioned.

My one issue with living in these things for any length of time , be it a summer , or permanently ,
... is shit (disposal of to be specific)